Microsoft Working On Gesture Input For Devices & Interactive Displays

Reports suggest Microsoft is working on gesture input for devices and interactive displays. While gestures aren’t new for the Redmond giant, it is planning to implement this technology using an electronic bracelet instead of relying on the camera to track movements of the wrist as it does on the Kinect platform. This gesture based input will not just be used on smartphones and tablets it can also be used to control electronic devices such as televisions. Since this system does not rely on camera tracking the user does not have to be in the same room as the gadget he/she wants to control. While this type of gesture recognition has already been implemented by start-ups such as Ring & Fin, it is nice to see that bigger players in the market are also interested in this technology.

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Microsoft is also said to be working interactive displays. One of such displays is the aptly titled floating display. With this display technology images appear to be floating a few inches above a flat screen monitor. These displays give an illusion of a globe spinning or a dragon flying. Motion sensors and cameras will track user input and make the image move about. Another example of interactive displays is one where the user sitting in front of a large display shall see a series of cubes and they have to slip their hands into them to grab the objects. These displays and the gesture based controls are still in the prototype stage and the final product is said to be ready in two to five years.